


All Betrayers Bleed

by MrAudioDrama



Category: The Penumbra Podcast
Genre: Coldness, Crying, Debt, Fighting, Hurt, Kidnapping, Other, s3 ending what if, very sad
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-14
Updated: 2021-01-20
Packaged: 2021-03-12 10:15:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,925
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28758690
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MrAudioDrama/pseuds/MrAudioDrama
Summary: Peter's debtors don't take kindly to his sudden change of heart, but rather than take things out on him they decide to take it out on the person he cares about the most. Juno Steel. Name revealed, planned betrayal known, Peter Nureyev is left to deal with the fallout.
Relationships: Peter Nureyev/Juno Steel, Rita & Peter Nureyev
Comments: 32
Kudos: 85





	1. Chapter 1

Nothing had been the same since they’d taken Juno. Since they’d heard him call out for them in desperation, in futility, before he’d disappeared from their sight completely.  
  
They know his name now, not that any of them will call him by it. They don’t call him by much of anything anymore. Besides traitor, at least. They were supposed to take _him_. Juno was never meant to be a part of this.  
  
The only person yet to say anything to him was Rita. Perhaps... perhaps she knew him well enough that she didn’t believe he’d give Juno up. He’d told them all as much, but he was sure that only Buddy believed him. Vespa was far too busy trying to gut him to listen to his words, and Jet hadn’t even stayed to listen.  
  
In fact, Buddy was the only reason he wasn’t waiting this out in the brig. Yet, somewhere deep down he wants to believe that this crew really is his family. That they trust him. Rita trusted him enough to not let all of his secrets out, that was more than he’d gotten from anyone but Juno in over a decade.  
  
Nureyev wanders down the hall to her room, it was nearly dinner time so he had no risk of running into Vespa’s knife. She should be occupied by Buddy, planning on how to find Juno. He desperately wanted to help, but they wouldn’t allow him. They didn’t trust him to not be organizing their own captures, no matter how many times he’s explained that Juno was taken specifically so Peter would forget about bailing on his debt.  
  
He raps once, twice on her door, “Ah, Rita dear? Might you have a minute so we can talk?”  
  
The silence that responds is not particularly encouraging, but he presses on regardless. Perhaps she was just engrossed in one of Juno’s favorite streams. She would watch them in the family room when she missed him too much.  
  
“Rita? I thought you could use some company... that we _both_ could use some company. I... I’ve found I'm not used to being alone anymore. Not without him...” He shuffles on his feet, he’s never had this much on the line before. None of this was meant to happen, he wasn’t meant to care about these people. Yet despite every reason he had to keep himself detached, he had failed. Anxiety claws its way up his throat as he waits for an answer, what has he done?  
  
Only silence answers him. Not even the hum of her comms on pause. She... must be sleeping. Yes. That’s it. He’s been talking to the air, is all. He’s not alone. He isn’t.  
  
“Rita... ah well. I suppose you must be resting before dinner. I’m sorry for the trouble.” He brushes it off, in case he’s disturbed her.  
  
He lets himself forget about it until he is in the same room as her the next morning. Buddy tended to let him get his meals before everyone else, to minimize conflict until the others were calm enough to talk. This morning was no exception, he was awoken at precisely five o’clock in the morning and unceremoniously dragged out of bed and into the kitchen for his breakfast. The only difference is that Rita hadn’t been able to sleep, and Jet, the gentleman he is, had offered to keep her company. So they were standing in the kitchen, chatting while Rita made hot chocolate.  
  
Nureyev feels a wave of fear, he turns on his heel. “I’m not feeling extraordinarily peckish this morning Captain, I think I’ll simply go back to bed.”  
  
Buddy grabs his wrist before he can leave. “You can’t avoid them forever, Pete.” She says his name with a fondness he does not deserve. She has protected him through this, and for what. After everything he’s done she owes him nothing, and yet... even as she treats him with a coldness he has never witnessed from her, she never looks at him with any less love.  
  
“Oh but I do believe that I can. It was your idea I believe to minimize our interactions!” He pulls his arm towards him, but she does not release.  
  
“ _Ransom.”_ She demands, “They are not in the way of your cereal. You don’t have to speak to them if you don’t want to. We are still a family, Peter. Whether or not you believe we care for you, that fact will remain.”  
  
“You don’t need to call me that.” Nureyev brushes her off but turns back around regardless.  
  
“I will call you whatever I like aboard my ship Peter Nureyev.” she bites, and he straightens all at once. Right. He got too comfortable. Buddy Aurinko is no friend of his, any attempt at civility is for the betterment of her crew... not for him. He deserves no such sentiments.  
  
He sulks into the kitchen, still rigid from hearing his name. It sounded wrong in that tone of voice, foreign. Peter Nureyev is something that should be whispered late at night, mixed in with declarations of love. It should carry the lightness that comes with trust, it should come from the rough voice of a tired detective who loves him no matter how impossible Nureyev had believed that to be. It feels like a bastardization to hear it used in such a way, but he is not allowed any grievances.  
  
His stride becomes more confident as he reaches in the cupboard. He reaches for his cereal for a moment, before seeing Juno’s next to it. He had such a sweet tooth, they bickered many a morning about who’s taste was better. It was Peter’s of course... but he found himself reaching for Juno’s anyway.  
  
He takes a deep, shaky breath and turns away for a moment to distract himself. He sees Rita, and that damned emotion curls in his gut again. _Hope_.  
  
“Ah, Rita! How lovely it is to see you this morning!” He smiles at her, “I tried to find you yesterday afternoon but... it appears I must have missed you. I do hope you slept well.”  
  
Peter’s tone is light, but even an easy mark would’ve been able to see through such an act. He feels the weight of his heart as he keeps his gaze on her. It leaps for just a moment when she looks away from Jet and to him. They hold that stare for what feels like an eternity, his eyes plead for her forgiveness. For understanding, even.  
  
And then she looks away, and Peter Nureyev breaks.  
  
“Right then.” Nureyev nods, “Of course.”  
  
His words are strained with the effort of holding back his tears. He turns, abandoning Juno’s cereal on the counter. He says nothing as he passes Captain Aurinko, and she does not try to stop him.  
  
He dares look behind him once, the last spark of hope that maybe she cared enough to watch him leave. That maybe Buddy cared enough to follow him. But it is extinguished just as quickly.  
  
He makes his way through the corridors with practiced ease, stilling when he comes to Juno’s room. It was untouched, no one had dared go inside lest they ruin the proof that Juno was ever here. There were echoes of him everywhere, from the toothbrush and razor in the bathroom to things he’d left sitting out that no one could bring themselves to touch.  
  
This echo was all Nureyev had left. He knocks once, twice, and the door opens.  
  
_Juno_ , he thinks. The room is far more organized than his own, a controlled mess Juno liked to call it. His bed wasn’t made, his makeup was strewn across a vanity. Shoes on the side of the bed that he always trips on in the morning.  
  
His trenchcoat... it had been too hot for him to wear it on the planet they’d taken him from.  
  
Nureyev takes a tentative step forward as if waiting for an alarm to go off. For Vespa to burst in and drag him away for daring to exist in a space that Juno once had. He shakes off his fears with a deep breath and stumbles towards the coat.  
  
He wastes no time in wrapping himself in the jacket. His hands wrap around the soft leather, the same leather that Nureyev grabbed to pull him into a kiss. The same leather that he ran his hands over when they would hug or cuddle on the couch.  
  
He falls onto Juno’s bed and takes in every sight, every sound, every smell, and every touch that screamed _Juno Steel._ He can almost pretend, even just for a moment, that he had gotten cold, and that Juno had gone to make him a hot tea while he used his coat for warmth.  
  
But he knows better than that. Peter Nureyev is alone once more.  
  
It’s that thought that finally makes him cry. 


	2. Chapter 2

He doesn’t know how long he stays there, wrapped in the ghost of his love. Was it possible to shed so many tears? The last time he’d done so must’ve been long before what happened on New Kinshasa.   
  
Maybe even longer. There’s not much room on Brahma for tears.   
  
He has just about calmed him down when the door slides open. Every muscle in his body tightens. He wraps the coat tighter around him. Whoever has entered the room remains silent as they move to sit on the other side of Juno’s bed.   
  
“ _Mistah Steel! Mistah Steel!”_ The sound of the comms startles him enough to make him look over and see Rita’s face, glowing in the blue light of the video. “ _Stop bein’ all shmoopy with your boyfriend! It’s RRRRRRita time!”_ _  
_ _  
_ _“He’s not my-”_ Peter watches as Juno pauses, his face pensive before he turns back to Nureyev with an easy smile on his face, “ _Actually I guess he is. My boyfriend... Peter Ransom.”_ _  
_ _  
_ Nureyev remembers this day fondly, he had told Juno exactly what he’d thought of that in the privacy of Juno’s chambers that night. Commitment was something that he’d struggled with for many years. How do you have long term faith in those you’re meant to trust after the person that was supposed to love you the most betrayed you?   
  
He’d thought it would’ve been difficult to commit to Juno again, after what happened. But it hadn’t been. It was one of the easiest decisions he’s ever had to make. Peter Nureyev wasn’t certain of many things, but loving Juno was one of them.   
  
The Peter on the screen smiles, a genuine smile. This was probably one of the only times he let the others see it. _“My partner Juno Steel. I think I quite like the sound of that.”_ _  
_ _  
_ Juno grabs his hands gently, “ _I think I do too._ ” He pulls Peter into a kiss after that, earning them a playful “Boo!” from Vespa.   
  
“ _Ohhh I made it worse.”_ Rita giggles. Nureyev doesn’t realize he’s crying again until the feed cuts off, and he can feel the wetness on his cheeks. Hearing Juno’s voice again... he hadn’t had the luxury. He didn’t keep personal comms, too traceable. All he had was the burner, and if he had put anything personal on there...   
  
Well... they took Juno anyway, didn’t they?   
  
He opens his mouth to speak, but Rita starts another video before he can. “ _Okay. We’re gonna prank Mistah Steel and Mistah Ransom! Captain A says it’s important that we keep each other on their toes, so I'm gonna run in and go AAAAA and scare em!!”_ _  
_ _  
_ Nureyev stares curiously at the Rita on the screen, he doesn’t recall her ever doing anything like that. The camera is turned, and she sneaks up to the corner, soft music filtering through the speakers when it lands on both Nureyev and Juno, slow dancing in the family room.   
  
_Oh_ , Nureyev thinks. He must be going soft, he remembers that night quite clearly, but he hadn’t picked up on Rita’s presence at all.   
  
The camera lurches forward when Rita pretends to run but stops short. “ _Ohhh, look at them..._ ” Rita whispers.   
  
They were swaying back and forth to the beat, Juno’s head rested against his chest. “ _Hey, Nureyev?”_ _  
_ _  
_ Hearing Juno say his name again made his heart want to burst. Soft and sweet, his gruff voice full of adoration. Oh, how he missed hearing Juno’s voice. One so often tinged with defensive aggression, that turned soft when aimed at Nureyev. When he was with Peter he had nothing to defend. He need only be himself.   
  
“ _Hmm?”_ The Nureyev on screen rests his head on Juno’s, “ _What is it, my love?”_   
  
_“I know that... you don’t like to talk about the future much.”_ They stop swaying, Nureyev visibly tenses in Juno’s arms. _“I understand that. Hell, I don’t even like to talk about the future much. But Buddy’s been telling me about the importance of communication and all that crap and... I want you to know that I can see it.”_ _  
_ _  
_ Nureyev’s voice is tight when he responds. “ _See what?”_   
  
The arms around him hold tighter, _“A future.”_ Juno is silent for a moment, pensive. Nureyev watches as, just as he remembers, the him on the screen tilts Juno’s head up with more delicacy than he treats the finest of jewels and pulls him into a kiss.   
  
The camera shakes as Rita stifles her cries, _“I shouldn’t be watchin this... and after Captain A just had to talk to me about boundaries!”_ _  
_ _  
_ The camera shakes a bit more, but before she can leave Juno lets out a small, high pitched laugh. Dazed from the kiss. _“With you,”_ He says weakly, _“A future with you.”_ _  
_ _  
_ Nureyev chuckles warmly, placing an additional kiss on Juno’s forehead. _“Can I let you in on a secret, Detective?”_ Really it was a miracle he sounded so calm, he remembers vividly how his heart had raced in his chest, how furiously he had been blushing. _“I can see it too.”_ _  
_ _  
_ It wasn’t very often that Nureyev allowed himself to indulge in romantic fantasy, but Juno has always been the exception. He could see their life together, old dreams stirring deep inside them. Stealing from people like Zolotovna, giving back to the people she hurt. It was his dream long before he met Juno, but only now did it feel like something within reach. He could picture countless nights spent together, waking up with Juno beside him.   
  
It felt even sillier to call it fantasy now. His relationship with Juno had been no fairytale. It had been so, _so_ real.   
  
If only he had realized that before it was too late. Now Juno was gone, and the touches he had taken for granted felt like the stuff of legend.   
  
When he’s pulled from his thoughts the room has gone dark, and Rita was staring at him with wide, tear-filled eyes.   
  
“Now, I'm not no scary super thief like you, and I'm not good at guessing people neither like Captain A. But you can’t fake a look like that. I’ve never seen Juno that happy the entire time I’ve known him.” Rita says it’s the quietest he’s ever heard her speak. She’s trying not to cry.   
  
“And...” Nureyev starts, eyes wide, and damn it all if they weren’t full of hope.   
  
“You’d better give him back. If you love him as much as it looks like you do, get him _back_ .” Rita turns to look at him, eyes filled with tears. He sits up so he can look at her more squarely, “ _Please_ ” she whispers, and then loses it completely.   
  
Nureyev’s not very practiced at comforting people, but he’d like to think he’d picked up a thing or two from Juno. He reaches forward hesitantly and is surprised when Rita jumps into the hug, sobbing against his chest.   
  
“There is nothing I want more than to bring him home, Rita. I _promise._ ” He whispers, rubbing her back just as he did Juno’s after a nightmare. “They were supposed to take me. I’ll give them what they want and he’ll be home safe and sound-”   
  
“No!” Rita shouts, making him jump. “No! That’s no good neither! You gotta stick around, this family wouldn’t be the same without you, Mistah Ransom!! It just wouldn't!”   
  
Peter Nureyev is normally an unshakable man, but today has shaken him to his core. “I... I’m not sure I follow?”   
  
“Do you think we wouldn’t be sad if you were gone? Trading yourself for Juno... he’d hate that. _I’d_ hate that. When Mistah Steel comes back it’s gonna be happy, okay? We’re all gonna hug and cry and the two of you can kiss or whatever it is the two of you get up to, and we’ll be a family again!!”   
  
“But... I betrayed you?” He trembles as he holds her, none of this lines up with the last week. None of this lines up with anything.   
  
“You- you didn’t wanna!! You told us that!! We just... didn’t listen.” She squeezes him tight, “Please promise me you’re not going nowhere, Mistah Ransom.”   
  
Fresh tears track down his face, “Nureyev. You can call me Nureyev, Rita.”   
  
She sobs at that, “Of course, Mistah Nureyev. For now... can we miss Juno together? I’ve missed you.” That’s how Nureyev should sound, he thinks. If it wasn’t competing with Juno, he would say that it never sounded nicer than it did at that moment.   
  
“Together” He repeats, resting his head on her shoulder.   
  
For the first time in many, many years, Peter Nureyev knows that he will never be alone again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!! Kudos and Comments give me shots of serotonin straight to the brain, so please consider leaving one!
> 
> Interested in more? Follow me @MrAudioDrama anywhere I would potentially be. My DMs and Askbox is always open if you have a writing req

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading!! Kudos and Comments give me boosts of serotonin!! 
> 
> If you like what you read you can find me @MrAudioDrama anywhere I would be


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